Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender (LGBT)

Creating an inclusive workplace is essential to maintaining a competitive advantage. The Cultural Detective Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender offers an effective way to bridge differences while fostering a climate of respect.

LGBT communities are defined by identities based on gender and sexual orientation. Their sense of culture emerges in their experiences in life due to core differences from the cultural norms surrounding gender and sexuality. These differences impact everyday attitudes and behaviors including those of survival, modes of expression, creation of family, and participation in community.

Institutionalized norms and assumptions (e.g., that marriage involves one man and one woman) frequently contrast with the ways in which LGBT people self identify. Often these contrasts are the basis for how others define and identify LGBT community members. Differences between self-perceived identities and other-perceived identities can result in the harassment of individuals perceived as gay, whether or not they are.